


True Love Ways

by galactic-pirates (stillsearching47)



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, M/M, Rumbelle Christmas in July, Rumbelle Christmas in July 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-23
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-12-05 20:13:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11585355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stillsearching47/pseuds/galactic-pirates
Summary: Written forRumbelle Christmas in July. Twenty-eight years after their happy beginning started Rumplestiltskin and Belle attend Gideon's wedding reception. They reminiscence about their life together, and hope that their son and his new husband share the same magical true love they have enjoyed, just without the painful events that marked the beginning of a tale that was as old as time...





	True Love Ways

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: So our son is gay.
> 
>  _@ryik-the-rumbeller-oncer_ I was your Santa. I hope you like the fic! A massive thank you to _@mariequitecontrarie_ for beta reading this for me. You are the best!

_‘What makes it even better, today our story starts anew...’_

“Twenty-eight years ago, did you ever think we’d be here?” Belle asked softly.

Rumplestiltskin dropped a kiss on the top of her head and rubbed a hand against her back, feeling the thin outline of her silk dress beneath his suit jacket. It was chilly on the balcony of the hotel ballroom, and Rumplestiltskin was sure that he looked distinctly windswept, but such a perfect moment was worth the minor discomfort. The upbeat music from the dance floor was muffled by the clear glass doors, allowing them to hear one another and still see everything happening at the wedding inside.

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth when he caught sight of Gideon. Their son looked so happy, energetically dancing with his new husband, his eyes sparkling and a grin splitting his face.

Nearby, despite having close to thirty years on the newlyweds, Ruby and Dorothy commandeered a section of the dance floor, lest fellow partiers run afoul of their flailing limbs. The wild gyrations of Gideon and his friends didn’t match with what Rumplestiltskin would call dancing, which was why he and Belle had decided to use this moment to get a breath of fresh air. They would slow dance later, holding each other close as they had a thousand times before.

“At a hotel in New York, hosting the reception for our son’s wedding to his husband,” Rumplestiltskin said dryly. “No, I can’t say I did.”

Belle poked his side gently. “That’s not what I meant and you know it,” she chided. “I always hoped we’d be here together, but after everything that happened ... I was almost afraid to dream.”

“Yes, I know what you mean,” Rumplestiltskin agreed.

Putting it in those terms it did seem fairly miraculous. Their courtship, such as it was, and early years together had been so tumultuous the past twenty-eight years did feel like a dream. The first few years had been the hardest, due to what Rumplestiltskin could only term the ‘adjustment period.’ So much had happened in such a short amount of time that peace was hard to accept. They had lurched from one crisis to another ever since Emma and Henry had broken the first dark curse. It had been a curious surprise to discover that the peace they had dreamed about was harder to live with than their lives being under constant threat.

It had taken time, and Rumplestiltskin didn’t think he’d truly relaxed until Henry had left town for university. Gideon was four years old, soon to be starting school himself, and Rumplestiltskin felt almost like something inside him had clicked. Unconsciously he’d been waiting for disaster to befall them - he was a villain and villains didn’t get happy endings. He settled into the slow pace of life around them, knowing _all was well_ , and he relaxed, letting himself truly believe in the happy beginning he and Belle had built together. When Gideon was five, Belle fell pregnant with their daughter, Nadia, breaking the streak of men born into the Gold clan.

Rumplestiltskin could see Nadia standing by the bar, gesticulating wildly as she talked with Henry. Nadia was Belle in miniature, and shared her mother’s love of books; and while she didn’t have her nephew’s author powers, Nadia did have a gift with words. Belle had confessed it was one of the proudest days of her life when she’d stocked the library shelves with multiple copies of Nadia’s first book. Her daughter’s creation adding to the special magic that could only be found in the written word.

“Do you have any regrets?” Rumplestiltskin asked, the words flowing from his tongue before he’d really considered the question. Today was a momentous occasion and as with all big events, it made him reflect on the past.

Belle twisted in his arms, lifting her head from his shoulder so she could gaze into his eyes. Her brow furrowed lightly as she searched for something in his expression. Rumplestiltskin stared back, he could easily lose himself in Belle’s eyes, they were still so impossibly blue even after all these years. Her chestnut curls were now streaked with grey, and there were a few more lines on her face. They now looked as if they were the same age physically, as he hadn’t aged a day thanks to the magic of the Dark One coursing through his veins. Rumplestiltskin had outlived one son, and that was one child too many; he had no wish to outlive Belle either. One day his curse would break, until then it served its purpose in granting them a life together - the _forever_ they had promised one another so long ago.

“What could I possibly regret?” Belle replied with a slight shrug.

Old insecurities waged war in Rumplestiltskin’s mind for half a second, but almost thirty years of happiness with his true love had reduced them to barely a whisper. “When Gideon went to college ...” he started.

“Oh Rumple, not that again.” Belle rolled her eyes in exasperation, but her voice stayed gentle “I’ve always loved learning but ... there are paths in life and that one wasn’t for me. Together, and as a family, we’ve traveled the world. We’ve made all our dreams come true, I wouldn’t have traded a single moment.”

She smiled warmly and Rumplestiltskin nodded, a parade of snapshots crossing his mind of all the places they’d been and what they’d seen. Belle had always wanted to see the world, and she’d wanted an adventure, and their life together had certainly accomplished both. They’d walked on every continent, seen what remained of all seven wonders of the world, and a lot of other tourist sites. However Belle wouldn’t be Belle, if she had been satisfied with just the tourist traps. They’d strolled the backstreets of Paris, finding hidden wonders that weren’t in any official tour guides. Rumplestiltskin had rented a car, and braved driving across Italy up and down the Amalfi coast, letting them stop at little villages to admire the stunning vistas.

The world tour had been incredible but their true accomplishment was their two amazing children. The only thing that dulled the shine of their otherwise perfect life was the absence of someone who should have been there - Bae. Rumplestiltskin gazed back into the ballroom just in time to see Regina tug Lucy playfully onto the dance floor. It was late for the little girl, and she had been sleepily leaning against her father, Henry’s, leg, but she perked up as she danced with her grandmother.

Bae would have been so proud of Henry. Rumplestiltskin could see that through his grandson, and now his great-granddaughter, Bae lived on in a way but that was cold comfort. It was a shame that Bae wasn’t here, they could have had a competition as to who was the proudest father. Rumplestiltskin thought he would probably win. Two of Nadia’s books had been turned into movies, which amused Henry to no end. The day they’d heard the news, Henry had fallen down he was laughing so hard, muttering something about Disney which Rumplestiltskin had tactfully ignored.

Nadia had enjoyed her time at college, studying English Literature as befitted a professional writer, but Gideon had become something of a professional student. He had accumulated several degrees over the last decade. He’d studied architecture first, having become fascinated by all the different building types he’d seen on their world tour growing up. Then he’d studied history, and antiques, with a minor in library science following in both his parents footsteps. Rumplestiltskin felt his eyes being drawn back to Gideon; he would never tire of seeing his son so happy. It had been at college that Gideon had met Chin, a native of Hawaii who for some inexplicable reason had decided to swap sun-drenched beaches for the cold drizzle and snow of New York. The two had been inseparable for years.

It had never been a question of _if_ they got married, it had always been when. Gideon had been nervous about telling Chin of his magical heritage but bizarrely Rumplestiltskin hadn’t felt any trepidation. He’d developed a sense over the years about people, and about true love, and he was fairy confident in saying his son had been blessed with the most powerful of all magic. Nothing, not even secrets about fairytale characters, could have kept Chin and Gideon apart.

“Do you remember when Gideon told us about his first crush?” Belle asked, breaking the comfortable silence that had fallen between them.

“I’ve always known the power of words but fate was smiling on us that day,” Rumplestiltskin murmured. “You teased him about ‘oh is there someone you like’ ...”

“And Gideon blushed.” Belle picked up the tale, her eyes misting in remembrance.

“He stared at his shoes and mumbled ‘Bradley’ and ...” Rumplestiltskin’s lips quirked in a smile. “I taught him about hamburger dates.”

Belle poked him in the side again, earning an exaggerated exhale of breath. “And I persuaded you not to threaten any dates with being turned into snails.”

Rumplestiltskin pouted. “He’s our son, Belle, nobody was ever going to be good enough.”

“Except his true love,” Belle finished. She shivered again in the chilly New York air just as the music transformed into a slow love ballad.

“May I have this dance, Mrs. Gold?” Rumplestiltskin asked, holding out his hand.

Belle stepped out of his embrace and curtseyed, her eyes twinkling as she accepted his hand. “I thought you’d never ask.”

Together they returned the ballroom, slipping into each others arms and gliding onto the dancefloor. Belle rested her head on his shoulder as they swayed together.

_‘Leave the past and all its scars, a happy beginning now is ours...’_


End file.
